


incarnadine

by SightlessHue



Category: IZONE (Band), Produce 48 (TV)
Genre: (not really) - Freeform, Alternate Universe, Angst, F/F, Major character death - Freeform, angst angst angst, eunbi is a ghost, ghost story, technically no major character death since they’re all dead, yena is a ghost, yujin is a ghost, yuri sees ghosts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-06-29
Packaged: 2020-05-29 18:04:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19405411
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SightlessHue/pseuds/SightlessHue
Summary: you look best in red





	incarnadine

**Author's Note:**

> hi uh i listened to ‘sick of losing soulmates’ by dodie while writing this 
> 
> as always, mind the spelling errors, i did this in an hour?
> 
> and i hope you enjoy it!!

perhaps they had been risky, falling for each other knowing it wasn’t allowed.

after all, it was against all rules for a human and a ghost to fall in love. but then again, all the rules had said opposites attract.

life and death, they’re opposites, right? yuri knew from the moment that she could see death, that something was wrong.

death isn’t as much as a dark hole as most people like to believe it is. death was inevitable, and after death your spirit leaves your body, drifting away together with the wind.

except when the wind ceases to blow, that’s when problems arrive. the spirit is rooted to the ground, lost, as one would say.

or others, would claim that they were unwanted.

unwanted; lost

after awhile, those words mix together anyway, there wasn’t a point attempting to distinguish the two.

but it won’t be eternally sad, the wind eventually picks up. seasons change, right? weather is unpredictable and yuri should’ve learnt that when she met her first friend.

yujin, a ghost who was five and the same age as yuri at that time. she was rooted to the ground, not literally, just unable to move freely.

think of it as a plant, leaves able to sway, but forever stuck to the same spot.

yujin was funny, they’d share jokes and yuri tried to hold her hands once, it didn’t quite work out.

she also tried to tell her mother once, and that didn’t work out so well either. her mother had all but just walked through poor yujin who looked like she was about to burst out crying.

yuri won the race, though, bursting into tears right away and complains about how she had just stepped on yujin.

her mother just assumed she was imagining things, nothing short of a five year old child.

so yujin tells yuri she was her secret, and maybe yuri was sufficed by this, or not.

it’s not until a fine monday, the same spot, the same brown wooden floors and red clock hanging on the wall on top of yujin, the same table right beside yujin’s form that something goes wrong.

technically, it wasn’t wrong. it was nature’s way, after all. what dies must go, carried by the wind. 

what lives, should not be with what died.

and maybe this was a punishment.

“yuri, i think i’m going.” it’s a whisper, out from the small girl’s lips. yuri didn’t understand — couldn’t understand. “what?”

“it’s getting windy,” yujin says, scrunching up her nose. 

“what?” yuri asks again, confusion sewn into her voice delicately. 

“goodbye, yuri.” yujin smiles, and it’s sad. yuri reaches out her hands to hold onto yujin’s form that was fading ever so slowly.

“yuding!” yuri cries, desperately clawing at the fading figure.

“thank you for keeping me company!” yujin says lastly, before she fades completely. 

the red clock at the side ticks and yuri is confused.

the first disappearance.

-

yuri is fourteen and thinks she’s got a good grasp on this ghost thing. attach yourself to no one and when the wind comes, you won’t get blown away too.

she does meet eunbi, her second ghost friend as yuri would consider. she was rooted on the school’s rooftop. eunbi recalls her stories of when she was a teacher there, a smile that graced her lips every time.

yuri knows she shouldn’t get too close, but eunbi is lonely and yuri just wants to be there for someone.

so yes, she does leave.

maybe it’s more painful than when she was five, because now, she understands what’s going on. 

her legs are crossed and she’s chatting animatedly when eunbi stills. 

“it’s the wind,” eunbi smiles, melancholy tracing every one of her facial features. “it’s finally here.”

yuri stares wide eyed. there’s no tears in her eyes, she’s more shocked than sad. she didn’t expect this to happen.

“yuri,” eunbi calls, warmth in her voice and yuri thinks she’s going to miss her.

“don’t get too attached,” eunbi says, voice sad. “i’m sorry you got attached to me.”

yuri wants to tell her not to apologise but her throat is dry and she can’t find the words.

“the living isn’t supposed to touch the dead,” eunbi says and she’s fading, her hands are gone.

“don’t get too close.” it’s her last words, before her smile is fading off and then her hair and lastly, her eyes convey an apology. and she’s gone.

yuri sits on the rooftop and watches the sun setting from the sky, and the school attendant is coming up to lock up.

“get out! you’re not supposed to be here!” 

yuri walks.

and doesn’t look back.

the second disappearance.

-

they called it life lessons  
so you could learn from them  
but too bad  
she wasn’t paying attention.

-

somehow in between broken hearts and lost spirits, yuri finds herself in college. she fails her mid years but she passes the final exams.

and she’s just so lucky that in her dorm roots a ghost.

“you can see me?” the ghost asks, pointing to herself curiously and yuri sighs but nods. “how?”

“i don’t know,” yuri shrugs. 

“that’s kinda cool,” the ghost says, grinning. “what’s your name?”

“yuri,” said girl sighs, flopping onto her bed. it isn’t uncomfortable, but acceptable.

“i’m yena! what course do you take? how old are you?” yena asks, voice peaked with interest and yuri already knows it’s going to be a loud year.

-

turns out, yuri likes loud. 

no, she doesn’t like the loud of concerts, or the loud of crowds. she likes the yena type of loud.

it’s pleasant, coming home from a tiring day of school and then back to yena, fueled with joy despite being, well, dead.

yena leans over her shoulder sometimes, and helps her with yuri’s work that she’s miserably failing at.

“how do you know this?” yuri asks curiously as she hits down whatever yena had just told her.

“i took the same course as you,” yena smiles, and yuri decides she was a mystery. and something inside yuri clicks.

maybe she wants to figure out this enigma.

-

“don’t get too close.” yuri remembers, remembers eunbi’s leaving form as she said it, her eyes apologetic and voice sad. too bad, though, yuri was always bad at heeding warnings.

when she was six and ate the popsicles her parents had warned her against eating. she had a stomachache afterwards.

when she was twelve and ran along a swimming pool despite the ‘no running’ sign. she fell down and broke her nose afterwards.

when she was fifteen and the teachers had warned them to listen in class but she didn’t. she ended up failing all her subjects afterwards.

when she was nineteen and fell in love.

she should’ve seen the signs, the butterflies. but she’d always been too immersed in yena’s puzzle, trying to string the pieces together.

“why do you do that?”

“huh?” yuri asks, turning around.

“pout your lips when doing work! you look adorable.”

yuri shouldn’t have let the blush take over her cheeks.

“are you blushing?” yena giggles.

“no!” yuri screeches and if she could touch yena, she’d definitely be shoving her away right now.

“don’t worry, bun, i like you in red.” yena smiles and yuri thinks maybe this is what love feels like.

-

“yena, do you think it’s possible for a ghost and human to fall in love with each other?” yuri asks, and as soon as she does, she regrets it. 

she doesn’t want the answer.

“yes,” yena says from her usual position. yuri frowns on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

“how do you know?” 

“why did you ask?” at this, yuri sits up and eyes yena suspiciously. 

“what?” yuri asks.

“i asked—“

“no, i mean why?” yuri corrects herself.

“isn’t that what i asked you?” her voice is soft and yuri feels herself wanting to listen to it more. but not right now, not during this conversation.

“i was curious,” yuri settles for that answer after a thirty second staring match. 

“do you,” yena licks her lips. “do you want to know the consequences?”

“huh?”

“of falling in love,” yena says and it sounds bitter. “with the wrong person.”

no. yuri wants to say, but instead she nods.

“realistically, they’ll go one day.” yena says slowly, her face is blank. “and they’ll never be back.”

“life and death are polar opposites,” yena continues, and this time, maybe in her voice, there’s something like vulnerability. “they aren’t supposed to meet.”

“and if they do?” yuri cuts in, unable to stop herself from asking even though the answer will always hurt.

“if they do,” yena starts, a bittersweet smile stretching across her face and she’s staring into yuri’s eyes. “it’s red.”

yuri swallows and pretends there aren’t tears stinging in her eyes.

she’ll wipe her tears and fold them into paper airplanes and throw them far.

-

“there’s a thunder storm today,” yena hums as yuri throws on her hoodie.

“there is,” yuri beams at the girl. “the perfect weather!”

“you’re so weird, people would say the sun or whatever was the perfect weather.” yena laughs, and yuri thinks it’s the prettiest sound she’s ever heard.

“and? what if i’m not people?” yuri asks, sticking out her tongue playfully at yena.

“ugh, whatever sap, just go or you’ll be late!” yuri hums at yena’s exclamation, hopping down and grabbing some books she had laid out the night before.

“wait, and yuri!” yena shouts, a cheesy smile on her face and yuri thinks she’s mirroring that exact smile.

“yeah?” 

“i love you!” yena grins, but there’s something in her eyes that yuri can’t pinpoint. 

they hadn’t said this before — the ‘i love you’ thing. 

“i love you, too.” yuri says, softly. if only yena knew how much she actually meant it.

(she did)

“oh, and yuri?” yena says again. “if you buy an umbrella today, buy a red one okay?”

“why?” yuri raises an eyebrow at the odd request.

“because,” yena smiles, and there’s adoration in her eyes. “you look best in red.”

yuri giggles and ducks her head, hiding her blush.

“alright, i will!” yuri says, throwing the door open again and walking out. she peeks into her dorm one last time, throwing a wink. “bye!”

“bye,” yena replies.

maybe if yuri has realised how final her tone was, even for a casual bye.

she should’ve realised something was wrong.

-

turns out, yuri didn’t have to buy an umbrella, it stopped raining after her second class, so she could freely go get lunch.

and by the end of the day, she’s fully drained and all she wants to do is get back and talk to yena.

she doesn’t know when the butterflies in her stomach became her companion when she walked back to her dorm but maybe it’s nice.

not so nice when you looked at the consequences of it.

yuri smiles, thinking to herself as she fishes her keys out of her pockets and slots it into the keyhole easily, humming when it unlocks.

“yena! i didn’t—“ yuri stops dead (she should stop using that word) in her tracks, feet unable to move.

she blinks. no yena.

hesitantly, she pushes through the door and lets it click shut behind her. 

she blinks again, no yena.

“don’t play jokes on me,” yuri says threateningly, but her voice cracks. ghosts don’t just disappear, they get carried away by the wind and it’s a one-way trip.

“d-don’t—“ yuri chokes out, feeling the tears forming in her eyes. 

“i said don’t!” yuri screeches, but she knows it’s futile, if yena was here she’d have seen her right away.

instead, through her blurred lenses, her vision catches on to something red on her bed.

the bed sheets were white, and the red protruded out, beautifully.

it’s an ugly mess.

yuri falls to the ground, the tears drowning her.

because if yena was strawberry red, yuri was five shades too late, nearing a maroon.

because there,   
on her bed,   
laid a single incarnadine rose,  
crimson and red  
that looked best on yuri.

**Author's Note:**

> okay hi!! i was feeling sad so i wrote shitty angst but uh i hope y’all liked it and it’d be nice if you left comments because that makes me feel less like shit
> 
> my twitter is @/yulqyen ,, come talk to me or sumn


End file.
